


Single Sound

by alltears



Category: Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, The Grisha Trilogy - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Angst, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Gore, Panic Attacks, Past Child Abuse, i did him dirty in this but he didn't mean it he just had a long day, ooc kaz a little, protect wylan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-03
Updated: 2017-02-03
Packaged: 2018-09-21 17:08:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9558959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alltears/pseuds/alltears
Summary: Wylan didn't do great on that job, but it wasn't his fault. At least, that's what he thought.(aka wesper hurt/comfort feat. van eck being a dick)





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hey!! I finished the SoC duology a few days ago, and I completely fell in love with Wylan and Jesper, both individually and together. There is an extreme lack of fanfictions for this fandom, so I'm here to supply. Loosely inspired by "You Don't Like Dancing" by Gabrielle Aplin. Enjoy!

The only sound was laughter as Nina, Matthias, and Inej stumbled into a small pub on the Western outskirts of Ravka. The latter two were leaning against Nina as they giggled, recounting comical moments and easy battles from their recent heist. Their rather obnoxious stories overwhelmed all other sounds from inside the pub, whether it be the harsh shatter of a glass dropped by an elderly man at the bar or the whispers and quiet laughter coming from two girls at the poker table. Jesper sauntered in shortly after the trio, grinning at their rare, giddy attitude and guiding them to a cushioned booth in the corner.

 

The mood shift that occurred when Wylan, followed by Kaz, entered the dark room was deafening. The laughter stopped abruptly at the sight of their matching frowns. Kaz, per usual, showed no emotion as he approached the group at their table - a table that was out of spaces to sit around. All it took was the smallest tilt of his head for all eyes to be on Kaz.

 

“Kaz, would you like to trade spots with me? I’m happy to-” Inej started, but was soon cut off by Kaz’s rough voice.

 

“No, I’ll stand,” Inej nodded, exchanging a worried glance with Nina. Jesper, his eye catching Wylan’s, broke into a grin once again and waved him over. Wylan’s sour face only worsened with the seating arrangements.

 

“Oh. Should I pull up a chair?” Wylan questioned.

 

“You could always sit on my lap” Jesper winked, a mischievous glint appearing in his eyes that accompanied a playful smirk. This routine had been going on for quite some time now. Jesper would flirt, and Wylan would blush. It was honestly the only constant in their lives between the six of them. So, the whole group was…  _ shocked _ , to say the least, when Wylan merely shook his head.

 

“Wylan? Are you feeling alright?” Inej asked, treading lightly as the boy seemed fragile and distant. Wylan blinked at her for a second before shifting his feet and averting his gaze to stare at a splinter hanging off the edge of the table. He picked at the wood and nodding, not daring to look up. The group stayed silent for a moment, each of them trying to figure out what happened. Nina glanced at Jesper first, but he just shrugged and stared up at Wylan, gently nudging his pinky with his pointer finger. Everyone’s heads turned to Nina as she gasped softly and jerked her head up to meet Wylan’s wide eyes.

 

“Honey, is this because your bomb didn’t work at the, uh,  _ meeting  _ today?” She asked, glancing warily around at the (thankfully) uninterested patrons. Wylan’s gaze softened, leading Nina to take it as a  _ yes.  _ “Oh, Wylan, everyone’s made mistakes. It’s okay, sweetie.”

 

“Yeah. No one blames you for anything,” Matthias spoke up. Jesper smiled and opened his mouth to speak, but Kaz jumped in first. 

 

“I do,” Once again, all eyes were on Kaz. He shifted away from the table to stare Wylan directly in the eyes. “You messed up part of the mission. If it wasn’t for Jesper, we’d all be dead right now,” Kaz lifted his gloved hand and pointed it at Wylan for effect. The group just watched, too stunned to do anything, as Wylan took a step back and Kaz continued his lecture. “Maybe -  _ maybe,  _ if this was the first time, I’d let you off the hook. But you’ve been coddled way too much ever since you joined us.  _ Especially  _ by all of  _ you, _ ” He said, jabbing his finger at the rest of the group. 

 

“Kaz?” Inej hesitated. He turned his gaze Inej.

 

“Not now,” He stated simply. Kaz swung his hand back around in gesture as he continued speaking. Wylan flinched painfully and continued backing up until his back hit what he - somewhere, in the very back of his brain - registered to be a photograph nailed to the pub wall. 

 

“Kaz,” This was different now. Not a carefully articulated question. A warning that he was going much too far. Inej remained ignored by Kaz, though. 

 

“Everything you’ve done since you’ve joined us has either been a fuck-up or just pure luck -”

 

“I - I’m sorry, I just -” 

 

“Don’t,” Wylan squeezed his eyes shut and nodded. “I only brought you along because you’re Van Eck’s son. That’s all you’ll ever be! And, Hell, you aren’t even  _ that  _ anymore,” Kaz gestured wildly to enunciate his point, his fingers brushing the green knit of Wylan’s sweater. He flinched again, panicked enough to have tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. He maneuvered his way along the wall sloppily, trying to get out of the building as fast as he possibly could.

 

“I’m sor - Ple-please don’t hit me, I’m sorry! I’ll do better next time, I will!” 

 

“Wy?” Jesper stood up where he was, concern clear on his face. Wylan’s eyes opened again, and he studied the faces peering at him as best he could through his blurry eyes. He felt himself shrink at their pity. Kaz frowned and looked down at his hands before staring back up at Wylan with - well, what they all assumed was his apologetic face. 

 

“Oh… Wylan, excuse me, I -” Kaz took a step forward again, his hands at his sides, trying to come off as unthreatening as he could. However, even if he was holding three puppies, Kaz would still be Kaz. Wylan pushed against the door until it opened, never letting his eyes leave Kaz as his breath sped up and the pub seemed to spin. 

 

“Wylan?”

 

“Wy? Are you - “

 

“Saints, Kaz, look what you’ve -” 

 

The entry door to the pub - the Fair Mermaiden, according to the sign looming above him - slammed shut behind it. 

 

Wylan stumbled to the right a few feet.

 

The only sound was Wylan’s heartbeat.

 

He tried so hard to focus on that sound. It was too fast, sure, but it was consistent, and Wylan needed to hear anything other than his father’s voice in his head.  _ You aren’t good enough. You’ll never be anything. You’re a fool, Wylan. _

 

“I’m not good enough…” Wylan said to no one in particular. His eyes were burning, and he couldn’t see anything because of the tears clouding his vision, threatening to spill over, but he  _ would not cry.  _ Only the weak cried. He pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes, trying to clear them, but to no avail. A thump sounded behind him, and Wylan urged himself not to panic all over again. He was strong. He could fight.  _ You and what army?  _

 

“Wylan? Are you out here?” A deep voice called. Wylan let out a shaky sigh of relief and turned.  _ Jesper.  _ Maybe he was embarrassed Jesper had seen him in this state, but Hell. He’d seen worse.

 

“Hey,” Wylan winced at how his voice cracked, the sound weakened from the short, worried breaths and cold winter air. Jesper looked over to him but didn’t move closer. Wylan lowered his gaze to his feet, kicking a puddle as an excuse to stall. Then, he turned his attention to the pink sign above them, taking note that one of the neon lights was out.  _ Fair Me maiden. Heh.  _

 

“So, um, sorry you had to - Oh!” The moment Wylan mustered the courage to look Jesper in the eyes, two strong arms were wrapped around him. He felt one of Jesper’s hand move through his thick hair and let out a shaky sigh. Due to Jesper’s obvious height advantage, it was easy for Wylan to envision himself burying his face in Jesper’s neck after a few seconds. Resisting his urge, he instead took a deep breath before slinking his arms around his neck, holding Jesper as close as he could for the time being.

 

“Wy, are you okay?” Wylan thought about how to answer that for a few seconds.  _ No. Absolutely not. Of course, why wouldn’t I be?!  _ He stuttered for a moment, and his grip on Jesper weakened. 

 

And then he burst into tears.

 

Jesper jumped at the sound of his first echoing sob, letting a small, surprised “Oh!” slip out. He pressed his hands on the trembling boy’s back, silently urging him to let him be his (literal) shoulder to cry on. Whether Wylan took the signal or just straight up collapsed, Jesper didn’t know - but regardless, Wylan’s cries were muffled by the (rather ugly, in his opinion) faded yellow button-up Jesper was wearing. 

 

“Jes… Why does everyone have to… have to  _ suck  _ so much sometimes?” Jesper bit down on his lip to keep from laughing, taking a minute to collect himself before responding.

 

“Well,” He said, shifting slightly so his chin lay on the top of Wylan’s head. “That’s just the way nature happens, I suppose. Inej’s are sometimes sly, Kaz’s are sometimes cunning, Jesper’s are sometimes dashing and handsome,” He smirked to himself, breathing out a laugh at Wylan’s groan of protest. He then frowned, worried about the reaction to what he wanted to say next. “And… fathers are sometimes abusive.”

 

Jesper felt Wylan stiffen, the only sound being the footsteps against the cobblestone of some Ravkans walking nearby.

 

“That was what happened, right? And Kaz just… brought back some unpleasant memories?” Jesper cringed at his own choice of words. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to be wrong, and have to face an awkward conversation in which Wylan would have to explain what really happened  _ and  _ tease him about  _ being  _ wrong, or to be right, and have to personally punch Van Eck in the face until there was no face left to punch. Wylan shifted against him - a nod, Jesper realized - and stepped away from Jesper to look him in the eyes. He opened his mouth, obviously feeling the need to say something without really knowing what to say.

 

“I - um. My - my father would, um -” 

 

“No, Wylan. It’s okay, there’s no need to tell me.”

 

“I want to. I… I owe  _ someone _ an explanation, and I’d prefer it be you than anyone else,” Jesper smiled at him. He clasped him on the shoulder gently, giving it a squeeze so he’d continue. Wylan nodded in silent confirmation and picked at his fingernail in thought.

 

“We didn’t - don’t - get along,” He started, breaking the silence. “My father had a lot of expectations for me. He wanted me to be the perfect heir to his business and fortune… I wasn’t that, I guess. I don’t really care about money, and I can’t read, and it certainly doesn’t help that I’m -” He fell short, his eyes closing to regain his composure. Jesper waited, patiently as he could, for him to continue. Wylan spoke again, much softer than before. “He hit me,” Jesper sucked in a breath but otherwise stayed silent. He squeezed Wylan’s shoulder again, watching as the corners of his mouth twitched upwards at the gesture. His smile, as slight as it was, did not last long. “He hit me until he just got tired of me. That’s - I don’t think it’s normal for fathers to do that.”

 

“Hah. No, it isn’t, Wy, you’re definitely right about that,” The both of them then fell silent. Jesper looked up at the sky. It was almost morning. The sun was rising over the small pub building, signifying a new day. A new beginning. He smiled to himself. Growing up on a farm, Jesper had seen thousands of sunrises identical to this one. But standing here, the far-away waves crashing and retreating being the only sound to be heard, and Wylan at his side… It felt better than any morning he’d had in a long time. The air was clear - in more ways than one.

 

“I get you don’t feel safe here. None of us do. But there’s  _ somewhere  _ we can be you and me. Maybe not here, maybe not now. But you will be safe.  _ I’ll  _ keep you safe” Wylan nodded once again, smiling softly up at Jesper. He didn’t miss the way the glow from the sun lit up his face beautifully. He grinned and held out a hand.

 

“C’mon, sunshine. Let’s go back in. You’re the only one who can keep Nina and Matthias from making out at the table,” Wylan laughed, a true,  _ natural  _ laugh, and accepted Jesper’s hand.

 

“Alright, then. Lead the way, Jes.”

 

The only sound was laughter as Wylan and Jesper stumbled into a small pub on the Western outskirts of Ravka.   
  


**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Kudos and comments are greatly appreciated! 
> 
> Twitters: @deansmorley / @miacscott  
> Tumblrs: @alltears / @hamforlams  
> Spotify: @amazingbrado  
> Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/alltears


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